Compact electrical connection that can be used to form an sram cell and method of making the same

ABSTRACT

An integrated circuit structure in which a gate overlies channel region in an active area of a first transistor. The first transistor includes a channel region, a source region and a drain region. A conductive contact is coupled to the drain region of the first transistor. A second transistor that includes a channel region, a source region a drain region is adjacent to the first transistor. The gate of the second transistor is spaced from the gate of the first transistor. A conductive via passes through an insulation layer to electrically connect to the gate of the second transistor. An expanded conductive via overlays both the conductive contact and the conductive via to electrically connect the drain of the first transistor to the gate of the second transistor.

BACKGROUND

Microprocessors which include in the same family microcontrollers, ASICsand various chips having one or more CPUs on a single die, frequentlyinclude a block of SRAM. When a block of SRAM is included on amicroprocessor, some of the process steps carried out in making themicroprocessor can also be used to make the SRAM. To make this possible,the SRAM should be designed in such a way to be compatible with theprocess technology used in making the microprocessor. The differentlayers of material which are available while the microprocessor isconstructed should be used in the SRAM cell. This presents differentchallenges than when manufacturing a stand-alone SRAM chip.

If the SRAM memory cell can be constructed using the same masks,materials, deposition process steps, insulation layers and other processtechnology used while making the microprocessor, then this saves theneed to create special masks and process steps for structures that areinside the SRAM cell, while reduces the total masks needed for makingthe microprocessor chip as a whole.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a circuit diagram of a 6T-SRAM cell.

FIG. 1B is a top side view of a prior layout of an SRAM cell.

FIG. 1C is a cross-section taken along lines 1C-1C of FIG. 1B.

FIG. 2A is a top side view of the layout of the portions made in thefirst steps of manufacturing an SRAM cell according to the disclosure asprovided herewith.

FIG. 2B is a cross-section view taken along lines 2B-2B of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3A is a top side view of the layout of the next steps inmanufacturing the SRAM cell according to the embodiments disclosedherein.

FIG. 3B is a cross-section view taken along lines 3B-3B of FIG. 3A.

FIG. 4A is a top side view of the layout of the next steps inmanufacturing the SRAM memory cell according to the embodimentsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 4B is a cross-section view taken along lines 4B-4B of FIG. 4A.

FIG. 5A is a top side view of the layout of the next steps inmanufacturing the SRAM memory cell according to the embodimentsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 5B is a cross-section view taken along lines 5B-5B of FIG. 5A.

FIG. 5C is a cross-section view taken along line 5B-5B of FIG. 5A at adifferent stage of the process.

FIG. 6A is a top side view of the layout of the next steps inmanufacturing the SRAM memory cell according to the embodimentsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 6B is a cross-section view taken along lines 6B-6B of FIG. 6Aaccording to one embodiment.

FIG. 6C is a cross-section view taken along lines 6C-6C of FIG. 6A,according to an alternative embodiment.

FIG. 6D illustrates an alternative embodiment in which a metal layeroverlies an insulator layer.

FIG. 7 is a top side view of the layout of an SRAM cell showing thevarious nodes in the circuit.

FIG. 8A is a top side view of the layout of steps in manufacturing theSRAM memory cell according to an alternative embodiment disclosedherein.

FIG. 8B is a cross-section view taken along lines 8B-8B of FIG. 8A.

FIG. 9A is a top side view of the layout of steps in manufacturing theSRAM memory cell according to the alternative embodiment of FIG. 8A.

FIG. 9B is a cross-section view taken along lines 9B-9B of FIG. 9A.

FIG. 10A is a top side view of the layout of steps in manufacturing theSRAM memory cell according to the alternative embodiment of FIG. 8A.

FIG. 10B is a cross-section view taken along lines 10B-10B of FIG. 10A.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1A illustrates a circuit of an SRAM cell that is constructedaccording to the embodiments disclosed herein. The circuit elements andelectrical connections for a 6T SRAM cell are well known in the art.Even though the circuit itself maybe known, there are many differentlayouts that can be used to achieve the circuit as shown in FIG. 1A.Disclosed herein in various embodiments is a compact layout for the SRAMcell circuit of FIG. 1A. This compact cell is compatible with amicroprocessor being made by the same process in the same semiconductorchip. In some embodiments, the same process steps which are used tomanufacture a microprocessor can be used in making the SRAM cell asdisclosed herein that will result in the circuit as shown in FIG. 1A. Noadditional masks are needed beyond those used in making themicroprocessor. In addition, those masks which are used in making amicroprocessor have a selected shape in the embedded SRAM memory portionof the semiconductor chip in order to achieve the layout and structureas disclosed herein. An explanation of the circuit connections andoperation of SRAM cell is beneficial as will now be provided.

As shown in FIG. 1A, the SRAM cell 10 has a total of six transistors.These include two P-channel transistors, P1 and P2, and two N-channeltransistors, N1 and N2. These four transistors are connected ascross-coupled inverters in order to store data at the data nodes Q1 andQ2. The data node Q1 is connected to the gates of the P2 and N2 at nodeV_(g1) and the data node Q2 is connected to the gates of P1 and N1 atnode V_(g2). Access transistor N3 is connected to data node Q1 at oneterminal and to the bit line at the other terminal. Access transistor N4is connected to data node Q2 at one terminal and to BL at its otherterminal. A word line enables transistors N3 and N4 in order to provideaccess of the bit lines to the data nodes Q1 and Q2. The access of thebit lines to the data nodes Q1 and Q2 can be provided in order to storedata at the data nodes or, alternatively, to read data from these datanodes. The source of transistors P1 and P2 are tied together andconnected to Vdd. The source of transistors N1 and N2 are connectedtogether and tied to Vss. The drains of P1 and N1 are connected to eachother, while the drains of P2 and N2 are connected to each other. Thisparticular circuit structure as shown in FIG. 1A acts as an SRAM cell topermit the writing and reading of data to and from nodes Q1 and Q2 usingcontrol systems.

FIGS. 1B and 1C illustrate some portions of a 6T cell using a layout andtechniques of the prior art. An active area 11 is overlaid by variousgate structures 9. Various electrical insulating layers 15 formelectrical isolation around each gate structure 9. These layers mayinclude interlevel dielectric layers, passivation layers and variouslayers of insulating material. Overlaying the gate structure is a gateinsulator 13, made of appropriate electrical insulating layerscompatible with the semiconductor process technology. An electricalcontact 17 is made to the active area. The electrical contact 17provides the contact to the node Q1 or Q2 within the cell between theactive area and the various other circuit elements in the SRAM cell. Anelectrical insulation layer 19 overlays the gate structure as well asthe contact 17. Using various masks and etching techniques, an openingis formed in the insulation layer 19 and then in the gate insulator 13in order to provide a via to selected locations of the gate structure. Avia 21 is formed that extends through both the insulation layer 19 andthe gate insulator 13 in order to contact various gate structures 9 atselected locations in the cell. At other locations in the insulationlayer 19, openings are formed to active area contact 17 and a via 23 isformed therein which electrically connects to the contact 17. Overlyingthe insulation layer 19, a conductive layer 25, e.g., a metal layer, isblanket deposited and then masked and etched in order to createconductive interconnection lines 25 a, 25 b, and 25 c which electricallyconnect to different nodes in the SRAM cell. This same conductive layer25 is used to connect to both the active area contact 17 as well as tothe gate via 21 at various locations in the cell. In addition, theconductive layer 25 is also used to electrically connect to differentcircuit nodes within an SRAM cell and to connect the cells to eachother. For example, an interconnection strip 25 b of the same conductivelayer 25 a extends through the central region of the SRAM cell. Further,other portions 25 c also make electrical connection to various nodes inthe SRAM cell.

A particular disadvantage of the publicly known layout and structure isthat to electrically connect the metal layer 25 to the active arearequires a double stack of contact and vias 17 and 23. Whenever vias arestacked on top of each other or on contacts, mask alignment errors canoccur and additional tolerances need to be built into the maskalignment, which tends to increase the size of the memory cell layout.In addition, the same metal layer 25 is used to make the structures 25a, 25 b and 25 c. This creates a metal-to-metal spacing which is verysmall in the same plane since each portion of the metal layer 25overlays the insulation layer 19. If an attempt is made to make thememory cell more compact, the various metal strips 25 a, 25 b and 25 cbecome very close to each other, which risks shorting them to each otherif there are any discontinuities in the electrical isolation betweenthem. In addition, when two metal layers are closely adjacent to eachother, with a dielectric between them, it creates a capacitor. As thememory cell size shrinks, the different conductive strips of layer 25,shown here as 25 a, 25 b and 25 c become closer and closer to eachother, which significantly raises the capacitance of the memory cell,which slows down its operation and may interfere with the long termstorage of data therein.

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate a layout and first set of steps in themanufacture of an SRAM cell according to principles as taught herein invarious embodiments. An active area 12 includes a semiconductormaterial. The active area 12 can be made of silicon, silicon-germanium,or other acceptable combinations of semiconductor material. In oneembodiment, the active area 12 includes a Fin structure to create aFinFet transistor. A gate 14 overlays the active area 12 at selectedlocations where transistors are to be formed. The gate 14 is made of anacceptable metal, and a gate insulator is positioned between the activearea 12 and the gate 14. The gate insulator may include hafnium oxide,and in some embodiments, may include a silicon dioxide, silicon nitrideor other insulators. The material for the gates may include molybdenum,titanium, titanium-nitride, tantalum, aluminum, as well as various othermetals and metal alloys which are selected based on the desired workfunction of the gate layers that are used in the transistors beingformed.

An electrical insulating structure 16 is overlaid on the active area 12,the gate structures 14, as well as in between the gate structures. Theinsulation material 16 may include multiple layers as well as variousspacers, and other acceptable layers of electrical isolation. Theinsulation material 16 can be formed of silicon dioxide, silicon nitrideor other suitable electrical insulation layers compatible withsemiconductor processing technology. In some embodiments, the insulatingmaterial 16 include numerous different layers and sublayers of differenttypes of insulating material in order to perform electrical isolationbetween the various structures. The various insulating layers are usedin the formation of microprocessors on a semiconductor chip and thoseinsulating layers which are used in the formation of the microprocessorcircuits, including the CPU, the logic, and other transistors can bedeposited in the location of the SRAM cell in order to form theinsulation material 16.

Shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, a contact is formed through the insulatingstructure 16 to the active area 12. This contact 18 is formed by etchingopenings at selected locations in the insulating material 16 and forminga contact using known techniques. In one embodiment, the contact 18 is atungsten plug which is formed using a Ti and/or TiN liner deposited intothe opening, followed by blanket tungsten deposition and etch-back inorder to form the contact 18. The structure after forming the formationof the contact 18 is shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B.

In one embodiment, after the structure of FIG. 3B is formed, a sealinglayer, such as Ti or TiN is blanket formed over entire exposedstructure. This provides the sealing layer over the exposed surface ofthe contact 18 and the the insulation structure 16.

FIGS. 4A and 4B show the next steps in the process according to variousembodiments as disclosed herein. A blanket insulation layer 22 is formedon the entire structure, overlaying the insulation material 16, as wellas the contact 18 and the gates 14. This layer 22 is formed as a blanketdeposition. It may be followed by planarizing etch-back, usually in theform of CMP. The insulation layer 22 can be made of any acceptablematerial, including silicon nitride, silicon oxide, or any acceptabledielectric.

An opening is made in the insulation layer 22 in order to form a via tothe metal gate 14. The opening in insulation layer 22 is made by aphotoresist deposition mask and etch process, and, in some embodiments,using an anisotropic etch such as a reactive ion etch. The etch iscarried out to etch through the upper portion of insulating structure 16to expose the gate 14. In those instances in which the insulation layer22 and the insulation structure 16 are made of different materials, theetch chemistry may be changed during the etch process in order to etchthe different respective layers, such as silicon oxide, silicon nitride,or other materials which may be present in the layers 22 and 16. In theembodiment in which a sealing layer, such as Ti or TiN are provided overthe insulation structure 16, the etch of layer 22 can be carried untilthe sealing layer is reached, at which time the etch chemistry ischanged to etch the sealing layer at the location that corresponds tothe via 20, and once it is removed at that location, the etch chemistryis changed again to etch through the insulation structure 16 until thegate 14 is reached. The etch can be carried out as either a timed etchor using an etch which does not etch the gate material 14 so the gatematerial 14 acts as an etch stop layer. The etching is carried out untilan upper layer of the gate structure 14 is exposed. A conductive via 20,e.g., a metal via, is formed in the opening in the layer 22 andstructure 16 to provide electrical contact to the metal gate 14. The viamay be made using any acceptable technique, such as a tungsten plug witha Ti and/or TiN liner and the like.

FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C illustrate steps in the sequence of the formationof the SRAM cell according to the embodiments disclosed herein. Afterthe via 20 has been formed, with the metal deposited therein, asubsequent mask and etch is carried out on the same insulation layer 22.This subsequent mask and etch creates a larger opening 26 in theinsulation layer 22 which completely overlays the opening previouslymade in the prior step for the via 20. In addition, the opening issufficiently large to extend from the via 20 to the contact 18. In someembodiments, as shown in FIG. 5C, the opening 26 in the insulation layer22 extends to completely include all of the area of the via 20 as wellas to include the area of the contact 18 that was previously formed in aprior step. This is sufficiently large to extend between two or morevias and contacts. The opening in the insulator 22 is then filled with ametal material in order to form the expanded via 24. The via 24 isconsidered an expanded via because it is sufficiently large to linktogether, electrically and mechanically, two adjacent vias, two adjacentcontacts, or an adjacent contact and via. The expanded via 24 fullyencompasses at least two vias and/or contacts which were previouslyformed in the same layer or prior layers.

As can be seen in FIGS. 5B and 5C, the via 24 extends to overlay the via20 as well as the contact 18, as well as the material between these twostructures. The via 24 therefore acts as an interconnecting via whichelectrically connects two vias together or, in some instances, a via toa contact.

The opening for the via 24 is made in the same insulating layer 22 inwhich a via was previously formed, and thus can be considered a doublelayer via. It also includes the area of the previously formed via aswell as the area of contacts or vias underneath the insulating layer 22.

As shown in FIG. 5C, the opening 26 for the via 24 to be made in layer22 is formed using the appropriate masks and etch chemistry for theparticular materials. For example, if the insulating layer 22 is made ofsilicon dioxide and silicon nitride combinations, a photoresist maskprovides a pattern corresponding to the shape of via 24, after whichsequential etches are carried out to completely remove the insulationmaterial in layer 22 to form opening 26 to expose the contact metal 18.In addition, an etch chemistry is used that will etch away and removethe metal of via 20.

Various different techniques can be used to form the opening 26, asshown in FIG. 5C. Different embodiments will now be described, any oneof which is acceptable for forming the opening 26 which exposes thecontact 18 as well as the via 20 to prepare the material for thedeposition of the metal for the via 24. In some embodiments, the metalfor the contact 18 and the via 20 will be the same metal, and both willbe etched by the same etch chemistry. In other embodiments, the metalfor the contact 18 and the metal for via 20 may be different and exhibitdifferent etching rates for a given etchant, and thus permit one to beselectively etched with respect to the other. For example, the metal forcontact 18 may be etched by an etchant that is not an effective etchantof the metal for via 20 or etches the metal for via 20 at asignificantly different rate than it etches the metal for contact 18.Alternatively, the contact 18 may have an upper layer of a differentmaterial that acts as an etch stop. Thus, various types of etchchemistry and etch steps can be carried out, as will now be describedfor different embodiments.

According to one embodiment, the etching is carried out using the metal18 as an etch stop indication layer, such that when the metal 18 isexposed during the etch process, that this indicates an end of etch.This particular technique is beneficial when an upper layer of contact18 is a different material than via 20. After the metal on the top ofcontact 18 has been exposed, then the etch continues for a brief periodof time in order to remove any debris, stringers, or isolated insulationover the metal 18, so that it is clear of all electrical insulation sothat good electrical contact can be made between the via 24 and thecontact 18. After this electrical insulation material has been removed,the metal that comprises the via 20 is then etched with an etchchemistry that is selected to remove the metal of via 20 but not removethe insulation material 22, 16, or the top layer of contact 18. Forexample, an etch chemistry that is selective to remove tungsten but notremove silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, Ti, or TiN can be used toremove the metal 20 until is it flush with the upper layer of electricalinsulation layer 22.

According to one embodiment, after the structure shown in FIG. 3B hasbeen formed, a blanket sealing layer is deposited over the insulator 16and the contact 18. The blanket metal layer may be a sealing layer oftitanium, titanium nitride, tantalum, molybdenum, or some other materialwhich can seal the tungsten of material 18. In some embodiments, thedeposited material is an etch stop to the insulation layer 22. Namely,an etch chemistry which etches the insulation layer 22 does not etch thesealing layer. Thus, in one embodiment, an additional sealing layer isapplied on top of the insulation material 16 and the contact 18.

According to this embodiment, a sealing layer is present overlying theinsulation material 16 and the contact 18 having been deposited on topof the structure of 3B. The opening is etched through insulationmaterial 22 until the sealing layer is reached, the sealing layer beingan etch stop layer that is not etched with the same etch chemistry thatetches the insulation layer 22. Since the sealing layer extendscompletely across the top surface of insulation structure 16 and thecontact 18, it prevents etching of the insulation structure 16 andcontact 18 to achieve an approximately planar top surface, as shown inFIG. 5C using the etch chemistry that etches layer 22. Thus, the sealinglayer being blanket deposited on the structure as shown in FIG. 3Bprovides the benefit of obtaining a substantially planar top surface forboth the contact 18 and the insulation structure 16 when carrying outthe etch of insulation layer 22. At this stage, the material of the via20 is exposed on all sides, since the opening 26 is sufficiently largeto leave the metal of via 20 as a pillar in the middle of the opening asshown in FIG. 5C.

FIG. 5C illustrates the process step between 4B and 5B. In particular,as shown in FIG. 5C, an opening has been etched in insulation layer 22to expose the upper portion of contact 18. In one embodiment, previouslydescribed, the opening 26 etches to stop on an etch stop layer whichoverlies the conductive contact 18, e.g., a metal contact, and alsooverlies the insulation layer 16. Namely, the etch continues to removeall the material of the opening 26 through the insulation layer 22 untilthe etch stop layer which overlies the insulation layer 16 is reached.Since this is a layer that is not etched by the same etch chemistry thatetches the insulation layer 22, the etching can continue until thematerial 22 is fully removed from the opening 26.

As also shown in FIG. 5C, the via 20 is fully exposed, because theopening 26 extends slightly to the other side of the via metal 20 toensure that full contact can be made to the entire area of via 20. Theamount of extension past the via 20 may be small, but some smallextension is provided to account for tolerances and mask alignment toassure that the full structure of via 20 is exposed for later removal.

In one embodiment, when the opening 26 has been formed, the metal forvia 24 is next deposited. This will merge with the remaining metal ofvia 20 to form a single large via 24. Since it has merged with the via24 outside of the opening in the insulation layer 16, they are now shownas a single integrated piece of metal. The deposition of the metal intothe opening 26 will continue to overfill the hole, after which a CMP iscarried out the planarize the surface as shown in FIGS. 5B and 6B.

In a different embodiment, subsequent to the structure shown in FIG. 5C,the via 20 is etched to be in a substantially at a same level with thecontact 18 and the upper surface of insulation layer 16. This etch canbe carried out by a number of techniques. According to a firstembodiment, the material used for the via 20 is selectively etchablewith respect to the material used in the etch stop layer over theinsulation structure 16 and contact 18. For example, the material of via20 may be tungsten, molybdenum, or other metal which is selectivelyetchable with respect to Ti or TiN. Thus, in one embodiment, the contact18 is comprised of tungsten, the sealing layer is comprised of Ti and/orTiN, and the via 20 is comprised of a metal which is selectivelyetchable with respect to the sealing layer. Accordingly, in thisembodiment, the material 20 is etched until it is planar with respect tothe upper surface of the sealing layer on insulator 16.

It is also permissible for the layer 20 to be slightly over-etched. Ascan be seen in FIG. 5B, the subsequent material deposited for the via 24will completely fill the entire opening 26. Accordingly, if the material20 is slightly over-etched to have an upper surface that is slightlybelow the insulator material 16, this is acceptable, since the materialof the via metal 24 will completely fill any opening, and make fullelectrical contact.

According to one embodiment, the material of the contact 18 and the via20 are the same material; for example, tungsten, or other suitablematerial. In one embodiment, an etch stop layer has been previouslydeposited overlying the contact 18. This was deposited subsequent to thestep as shown in FIG. 3B, as previously described. In this embodiment,the uppermost surface of contact 18 is covered by an etch stop layerthat is not etchable with the same etch that would etch the material oflayers 20 and 18. This etch stop material can be, for example, Ti, TiN,Ta, or the like. With the protective layer overlying the contact 18, thematerial 20 is etched with a timed etch until it is substantially flushwith the upper surface of material 16, as previously described. Afterthis, an etch is carried out to selectively etch away the etch stoplayer while not etching the material of layers 20 and 18. For example,an etch is carried out that will selectively etch away Ti or TiN butdoes not etch tungsten. This will therefore expose the uppermost surfaceof the contact 18 for the subsequent deposition of via 24.

As a further alternative, the etch stop layer can be left in place, andnever etched. Ti and TiN are highly conductive metals and therefore thevia material 24 can be deposited directly onto the etch stop layer if itis composed of Ti or TiN, and good electrical connection made throughthe etch stop layer to the contact 18. In this embodiment, with Ti orTiN as a blanket layer across the entire bottom of opening 26, a highlyconductive surface is available for the deposition of tungsten. Sincethe goal is to have a low-resistance contact to the contact 18, havingthe etch stop layer of metal extend across the entire bottom surface ofthe opening 26, including on the upper surface of the insulatingstructure 16, provides additional area for electrical contact, andfurther increases the conductivity and thus provides further benefits.

In some embodiments, an etch stop layer will not be used over thecontact 18 when it is comprised of tungsten, and therefore tungsten willbe exposed flush with the upper surface of insulating structure 16. Evenif a Ti or TiN liner is present in the bottom and side walls of theinsulating structure 16, if a CMP or other etch is carried out, theexposed material of the contact 18 will be tungsten at the uppermostsurface.

In some embodiments, it may be desired to have the tungsten of via 24 indirect mechanical and physical contact with the tungsten of contact 18.In such instances, any overlying layers over the contact 18 are removed,so that the tungsten of via 24 is directly deposited onto the tungstenof contact 18, thus providing a continuation of the same metallicstructure which will have high conductivity and low likelihood ofcontaining gaps or electrical discontinuities. The structure shown inFIG. 5B can be an embodiment in which the via 24 directly overlays thecontact 18, and there is no intermediate metallic layer between the two.In this embodiment in which the material of the via 24 is the samemetal, such as tungsten, as the contact 18 and the via 20, then allthree materials of tungsten are in direct mechanical, physical, andelectrical contact with each other, providing a low resistivityconnection of the via 24 that couples the contact 18 to the via 20.

In the embodiment, in which the material of via 20 and the material ofcontact 18 are both made of the same metal; for example, tungsten, thefollowing steps are carried out. After the opening 26 is etched as shownin FIG. 5C, in one embodiment, the material of via 20 is next etchedsufficient to remove the upstanding material of via 20 above the top ofinsulator material 16 shown in FIG. 5C until the top of material of via20 is flush with the insulator material 16. During this etch for thisembodiment, the upper surface of contact 18 might also be etched awayfor a depth equal to the height of the material of via 20. This may, forexample, be 15% or 20% of the height of the contact 18. In manyinstances, the insulator 22 will be about 15%, or in some cases 20%, ofthe height of the insulation material 16. Accordingly, the pillar of via20 can be fully etched while at the same time approximately the upper20% of contact 18 is also etched away, leaving a recess in the upperpart of contact 18 equal to the height of the via 20 that extends abovethe material 16. After the upper region of contact 20 has been etchedaway to leave an upper surface flush with the top surface of insulatingstructure 16, then the etch is stopped. This can be carried out using atimed etch or other acceptable technique. Subsequently, the via 24 isdeposited in the opening 26. When it is deposited, it will completelyfill any removed portion of the contact 18 at the same time that itfills the opening 26. The material of via 24 in one embodiment istungsten, which will fill any recesses, pockets, or over-etching whichmay have occurred in contacts 18 and via 20, while also fully fillingthe opening 26. After the tungsten fully fills the opening 26 and anyrecesses in 18 and 20, that may have occurred during the etch, it willextend above the top surface of layer 22. At this stage, an etch back iscarried out to remove the excess material of layer 24 that is outside ofthe via. This can be a planarizing etch that is carried out on thecombination of insulator layer 22 and via 24 in order to planarize thesurface. A CMP etch can provide a full planarizing etch of thesemiconductor structure at this stage to remove all via material 24 thatis outside the opening 26, and results in the planarized upper surfaceas shown in FIG. 5B. Various embodiments of different processes that canbe carried out to form the via 24, as shown in FIG. 5B, from thestructure of FIG. 4B, have been disclosed. Any one of the variousembodiments which have been described can be used or, alternatively,different process steps may also be used in order to achieve the via 24which extends to overlap both contact 18 and the via 20 to electricallyconnect them to each other as shown in FIG. 5B.

FIG. 6A shows the insulation layer 28, which has been overlaid on theinsulator 22 and the via 24. Subsequently, a metal layer 30 is eitherprovide within or overlaid on the insulator 28, as show in FIGS. 6A, 6C,and 6D. The metal 30 is an interconnect wiring layer to electricallyconnect different portions of the circuit to various signal levels,voltage sources such as ground and power, and provide otherinterconnections between the circuit. Thus, the metal layer 30 is awiring connection layer which is a distinctly different structure fromthe via structure as used for 24, 20.

In some embodiments, the metal interconnection layer 30 is made of avery low-resistivity metal, such as aluminum or, in one embodiment,copper. Since, Al and Cu have lower resistivity than tungsten ortitanium, the use of Al and Cu for the wiring layer 30 provides a lowresistance for connections between circuit components and to providesignals and power to various parts of the SRAM circuit. The wiring layer30 will extend to portions of the microprocessor formed on the same diefor a significant length to many different parts of the entire circuit,and therefore, using a lower resistance material such as Al or Cu isbeneficial.

FIG. 6C is a cross section taken along the line 6C-6C shown in FIG. 6A.As can be seen, this cross section passes through two active areas 12 aswell as through two contacts 18 and the metal wiring line 30. In a firstembodiment, shown in FIG. 6C, a metal wiring layer is deposited on theinsulation layer 22 and then is patterned and etch to obtain the metalstrip 30 shown in FIG. 6C. After this, an insulation layer 28 isdeposited on the the metal wiring layer 30. The insulation layer 28 isthen etched to be planar with the top surface of the wiring layer 30.This can be done with CMP etch to planarize the entire structure or withany other acceptable etch to result in the structure shown in

FIG. 6C. In an alternative method to obtain the structure of FIG. 6C,the insulation layer 28 is first deposited and then a recess is etchedin insulation layer 28. After the recess is etched, the metal 30 isdeposited into the recess to provide an embedded wiring line 30 in thelayer. The wiring layer 30 extends to other electrical circuits andvoltage sources in the semiconductor chip as previously described.

As can be seen, the metal 30 is spaced from both of the vias 24sufficient to ensure that there is no electrical shorting or electricalcontact between the metal 30 and either of the vias 24. In addition, itis a different plane, and therefore there is little or no capacitivecoupling between the metal 30 and the vias 24. Accordingly, the problemof potential high capacitance is prevented, along with the potential forshorting or stray connections.

FIG. 6D illustrates an alternative embodiment in which the metal layer30 is deposited overlying the insulator layer 28. In particular, in thealternative embodiment, a recess is not etched in the insulator 28, andinstead the metal 30 overlies on top of the insulator 28, placing iteven further from the via material 24.

In the embodiment of FIG. 6D, even further protection is provided toensure that the metal 30 cannot short to either of the vias 24, and alsohas even less capacitive coupling to vias 24. In the embodiment of FIG.6D, the insulation layer 28 is deposited overlying the structure shownin FIG. 5B. After this, the metal 30 is deposited overlying theinsulation layer 28. In some parts of the circuit, for example where themicroprocessor is being formed, openings may be provided in insulationlayer 28 in order to provide electrical contact between adjacentvertical layers. Thus, the wiring layer 30 will electrically contactconductive layers below it at some locations in the microprocessorstructure. However, in the embodiment of FIG. 6D, an opening is notetched overlying the insulation layer 28 at the particular location ofthe cross section shown in FIG. 6A where it overlays the vias 24. Inthose locations, such as Vd as shown in FIG. 6A, and

Vdd as shown in FIG. 7, where it is desired for the metal 30 to contacta conductor in a lower layer, an opening is etched of the type shown inFIG. 6C so that at that location the metal 30 is able to contact metalwhich is directly below it positioned within insulation layer 22. Eitherembodiment, FIG. 6C or FIG. 6D, may be carried out depending on thedesign of the particular mask used at that time in the process whenforming the microprocessor structure.

After the structure of FIG. 6C or 6D is formed, additional layers areformed overlying the insulator layer 20 and the metal layer 30, whichmay include several additional layers of electrical insulation andwiring layers, along with the appropriate vias, to connect the variouswiring layers to each other.

In particular, as the other circuits for the microprocessor areconstructed on the same semiconductor die, various layers of insulatorswith metal wiring layers on top of them will be repeatedly formed. Manymicroprocessors contain between 7 and 13 metal layers. Therefore theprocess of depositing insulating layers with metal layers between themmay be continued for a number of additional steps above the structuresshown in FIGS. 6A-6D.

The present process has significant benefits when being used inconjunction with forming a microprocessor in other parts of the samesemiconductor chip. In particular, the formation of the microprocessorhas process steps that result in the formation of numerous contactsidentical to contact 18, vias identical to via 20, and viascorresponding to via 24. Thus, in the same process steps in which thesevarious insulation materials 16 and 22 are formed in the microprocessorsection of the chip to connect logic circuits, these layers are formedand etched in the SRAM cell. Similarly, when the respective contacts andvias are formed in the microprocessor section, the identical processsteps are carried out to form the contacts 18 in the various SRAM cells.When a corresponding via 20 is formed in the microprocessor section, themask, etch, and depositions are carried out to form the via 20 in theSRAM cell. Similarly, vias corresponding to via 24 are formed in themicroprocessor section of the semiconductor chip at the same time and inthe same process steps, the via 24 can be formed in the SRAM cell thatextends from the contact 18 to the via 20 as shown with respect to FIGS.5A-5C. Thus, the various process steps carried out to form the SRAM cellare carried out simultaneously with the same process steps being used toform transistors in the microprocessor section of the same semiconductorchip and additional particular steps need not be carried out in the SRAMcell.

FIG. 7 is a view of the layout showing the various nodes at theelectrical circuit that form the 6T SRAM cell 10. The top metal line 30is not shown so that the various nodes can more easily be seen. As willbe appreciated, in the final SRAM cell, the metal line 30 is present, asare other overlying insulation and wiring layers in order to provide theelectrical connection to the various nodes.

As shown in FIG. 7, the SRAM cell 10 includes the two storage nodes Q1and Q2. These two storage nodes are electrically part of the contact 18as shown in FIGS. 3A-6B. In particular, the metal contact 18electrically connects the drain of transistor P1 to the drain oftransistor N1, as can be seen in FIG. 7. Since transistors N1 and N3 areboth N-channel transistors, they can share a common active area. Thecontact 18 is connected to this common active area. This will be thesource of transistor N1 and can either be the source or the drain oftransistor N3 depending on whether data is being written to or read fromthe data storage node Q1 to or from the bit line and the value of thedata. As is known, the identification of a particular terminal of an MOStransistor as a source or a drain can change depending on the relativevoltages at the two terminals and the operation of the MOS transistor.Also shown in FIG. 7 node Q2, which also has a contact 18 electricallyconnects the common active area of transistors N2 and N4 to the drain oftransistor P2, as can be seen viewing FIG. 1A. The respective nodesV_(g1) and V_(g2) are also shown in FIG. 7 corresponding to those inFIG. 1A. The various connections to outside of the memory cell arelabeled, but the electrical lines connecting them are not shown, toavoid obscuring the structure of the cell itself. In particular, theelectrical connections for Vss and Vdd are shown with the labels, as areconnections to the bit line and bit line bar and the word line.

FIG. 8A to 10B show an alternative embodiment for forming an enlargedvia 42 as will now be described.

FIG. 8A is a top side view of the layout of steps in manufacturing theSRAM memory cell according to this alternative embodiment. FIG. 8B is across-section view taken along lines 8B-8B of FIG. 8A.

When the structure is in the state as shown in FIG. 3B, the insulationlayer 22 is deposited. After this, a hole 44 is etched for a via to beformed later. The hole 44 might also be called a recess, blind hole,opening or other name that indicates that access to the gate 14 isprovided through layer 22. This hole 44 is etched through to reach thegate 14 and is left as an open hole, as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, asalso noted in the legend of 8A. This may require two or three differentetch chemistries, since different layers are present, but it can be donewith a single pattern and mask step.

After this a second etch is carried out as shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B.This second etch is carried out by doing a further pattern and mask setto provide an opening over the contact 18, as shown in 9B. An etch iscarried out to create the hole 46. The hole 46 might also be called arecess, blind hole, opening or other name that indicates that access tothe gate 14 is provided through layer 22. As can be seen, this hole 46includes within it the prior hole 44. However, the etch chemistry doesnot etch the insulator 16. In one embodiment, there is an etch stoplayer, such as Ti or TiN or other suitable etch stop layer materialoverlying the insulator 16 and the etch can stop on this layer to createthe hole 46 as shown.

In an alternative embodiment, it is possible to not perform the pattern,mask and etch to form hole 44 and instead just carry out the single stepof forming hole 46. Since hole 46 includes all of hole 44, it ispossible to save a series of pattern, mask and etch steps and just etchhole 46 and not etch hole 44 at all. In this alternative embodiment, theetch chemistry is selected to etch all layers present overlying the gate14. Therefore, that portion of the insulator 16 that is between thecontact 18 and the gate 14 will be etched and the structure will looksomewhat different from that shown in FIG. 9B. It is acceptable in someembodiments to remove the insulator between the contact 18 and the gate14 since the goal of via metal 42 is provide a low resistance electricalconnection between the two structures and the removal of additionalinsulation will provide large surface contact between them and via metal42.

FIG. 10A is a top side view of the layout of steps after hole 46 isetched. A metal is deposited to form the metal via 42 that fills bothholes 44 and 46 at the same time. In this embodiment, this is done in asingle series of metal deposition steps rather than the two differentseries as shown and described with respect to FIGS. 4A-5C. In thisalternative embodiment, only a single metal deposition process iscarried out and the same metal is a single, integrated, continuous metalmember from the contact 18 to the gate 14. This will provide for evenlower resistance of the connection between them, as shown in FIG. 10B.

As can be seen, a compact SRAM cell is constructed in which the elementscan be placed very close to each other to provide a smaller footprint ofthe memory cell than was previously possible. Rather than using a metalwiring layer to electrically connect a contact to the gates of othertransistors, a via is formed that electrically connects the contact ofthe storage node of one transistor to the common gates of the othertransistors for the other storage node. The use of an enlarged via, thatoverlays prior vias and extends to a contact, provides significantsavings in space for forming electrical connections within the memorycell, thus permitting a more compact memory cell than was previouslypossible.

In FIG. 7, the extended via 24 is shown that corresponds to the oneshown in FIG. 6B. Specifically, as can be seen, the via 24 of FIG. 7extends from the contact 18 of Q1 to the gate 14 that contains nodeV_(g1) that is part of the common gate for transistors P2 and N2.Similarly, another via 24 electrically connects the node Q2 of contact18 to the other pair of transistors to the common gate connection Vg₂for P1 and N1. Therefore, the use of the extended via 24 avoids the useof a metal wiring layer to carry out the electrical connection betweenthe various internal nodes of the transistors of the 6T SRAM memorycell, permitting a more compact cell and thus resulting in a cell with asmaller area and smaller footprint.

The present disclosure in various embodiments provides a compact 6T SRAMcell with interconnections that provides a small area footprint of anSRAM cell. In the compact SRAM cell a common gate is provided for afirst pair of transistors that is coupled to an electrically coupleddrain of a second pair of transistors. The second pair of transistorshas a common gate that is coupled to an electrically coupled drain ofthe first pair of transistors, thus cross-coupling the two pairs oftransistors to each other. An expanded metal via extends from the drainof one transistor to the common gate of the first pair of transistors toprovide the electrically coupling, thus achieving a memory cell that ismore compact than previously possible. The use of a metal via thatextends from the drain of one transistor to the common gate of twotransistors provides significant savings in space, mask layers andprocess steps. It avoids the need to use of one or more metal wiringlayer for the cross couple connection, which not only makes the cellmore compact, but reduces the stray capacitance that would occur if ametal wiring layer or layers had to provide the functions of connectingone or more voltage supplies to the memory cell while also providingcross couple connection.

This layout of the SRAM cell disclosed removes two metal wiring stripsfrom the memory cell, permitting the cell to become more compact. Thereis practical limit to how close one metal wiring strip can be to anadjacent strip because they might short to each other if they get toclose and the capacitance is increase the closer the strips get to eachother. By using a via that is in different insulating layer than themetal wiring layer, the components of the cell can be closer to eachother and avoid the potential for shorting or capacitive cross coupling.

According to one embodiment, an integrated circuit structure has asubstrate and a semiconductor active area overlying that substrate. Afirst gate is overlying a first channel region in the active area. Afirst transistor is formed that includes the first channel region, afirst source region adjacent to a first side of the channel in theactive area, a first drain region adjacent to a second side of thechannel region and the first gate. A conductive contact is directlyconnected to the first drain region of the first transistor and a secondgate is positioned spaced from the first gate. The second gate isoverlying a second channel region. A second transistor that includes thesecond channel region, a second source region adjacent to a first sideof the second channel in the active area, a second drain region adjacentto a second side of the second channel region and the second gate isformed in the circuit. A conductive via is directly connected to thesecond gate. Above this an expanded conductive via that overlays theconductive contact and the conductive via electrically connect them toeach other, the expanded conductive via extending in a plane from theconductive contact to the conductive via. A first electrical insulationlayer surrounds the expanded conductive via.

In one embodiment, the insulation structure that overlays thesemiconductor active area is positioned to surround the first gate andthe second gate. The conductive contact is positioned between the firstgate and the second gate. In a further embodiment the conductive contactis surrounded by the insulation structure.

In one embodiment an SRAM cell is formed by having a third transistorand fourth transistor in which the first gate overlays a third channelregion of the third transistor and the second gate overlays a fourthchannel region of the fourth transistor and a drain of the thirdtransistor is electrically coupled to first gate to form a pair ofcross-coupled invertors, which create an SRAM cell. In otherembodiments, a pair of access of transistors are connected to thestorage nodes to provide a full 6T SRAM cell.

In one embodiment, a second electrical insulation layer is overlying theexpanded conductive via and the first electrical insulation layer. Ametal wiring layer is overlying the first electrical insulation layer.The metal wiring layer is positioned spaced from the expanded conductivevia in contact with the first electrical insulation layer and surroundedby the second electrical insulation layer.

In yet a further embodiment, an integrated circuit structure has asemiconductor active area. There is a gate overlying a channel region inthe active area of a transistor that includes the channel region and afirst terminal adjacent to a first side of the channel in the activearea. A conductive contact is electrically coupled to the first terminalof the first transistor. A conductive member is spaced from the firstgate. A first conductive via is electrically coupled to the conductivemember. A second conductive via is positioned to overlie the conductivecontact and the first conductive via, the second conductive viaelectrically coupling the conductive contact to the first conductive viato provide electrical coupling from the first terminal of the transistorto the conductive member.

In one embodiment, this connection used to provide a compact structurefor connecting a common gate one pair of transistors to the drain ofanother transistor. In this embodiment the first terminal is the drainof the transistor.

In one embodiment, the gate has a first height overlying the active areaand the conductive contact has a second height overlying the active areaand the second height is greater than the first height. This permits thesecond conductive via to extend from the conductive contact to the firstconductive via to overlay conductive contact, the first conductive viaand the second gate. This structure can be used in a FinFet transistoras well as other structures.

The structure can be formed by the following method steps. An activearea of a semiconductor is formed and then a gate is formed overlyingthe active area. An insulating structure is formed over the active areaand the gate. There is an etch of an opening in the insulating structurespaced from the gate, the opening exposing the active area in a regionspaced from the gate. A first conductive material is deposited in theopening to provide an electrical connection to the active area. A firstinsulating layer is deposited over the insulating structure and thefirst conductive material and then there is an etching an opening in thefirst insulating layer, the opening being spaced from the firstconducive material and the opening exposing a conductive structure thatis spaced from the first conductive material. A second conductivematerial is then deposited in the opening that is electrically coupledto the conductive structure and a second insulating layer is depositedpositioned over the first insulating layer, the first conductivematerial and the second conductive material. An opening is then etchedin the second insulating layer, the opening extending from the firstconductive material to the second conductive material and a thirdconductive material is deposited in the opening that extends from thefirst conductive material to the second conductive that electricallycouples the active area in a region spaced from the gate to theconductive structure.

In one embodiment, the structure created has gate of first gate of afirst transistor and the active area it overlays as a first channelregion of the first transistor and the first conductive materialelectrically connects to a drain of the first transistor. The conductivestructure is a second gate that overlays a second active area of asecond transistor and the third conductive material electricallyconnects the drain of the first transistor to the second gate of thesecond transistor.

In one embodiment, each of the first, second and third conductivematerials comprise tungsten.

The various embodiments described above can be combined to providefurther embodiments. All of the U.S. patents, U.S. patent applicationpublications, U.S. patent applications, foreign patents, foreign patentapplications and non-patent publications referred to in thisspecification and/or listed in the Application Data Sheet areincorporated herein by reference, in their entirety. Aspects of theembodiments can be modified, if necessary to employ concepts of thevarious patents, applications and publications to provide yet furtherembodiments.

These and other changes can be made to the embodiments in light of theabove-detailed description. In general, in the following claims, theterms used should not be construed to limit the claims to the specificembodiments disclosed in the specification and the claims, but should beconstrued to include all possible embodiments along with the full scopeof equivalents to which such claims are entitled. Accordingly, theclaims are not limited by the disclosure.

1. A method of forming a semiconductor structure, comprising: forming anactive area of a semiconductor; forming a first gate overlying theactive area; forming a second gate directly adjacent to the active area;forming an insulating structure over the active area and the first gate;etching an opening in the insulating structure spaced from the firstgate, the opening exposing the active area in a region spaced from thefirst gate; depositing a first conductive material in the opening toprovide an electrical connection to the active area; depositing a firstinsulating layer over the insulating structure and the first conductivematerial; etching an opening in the first insulating layer and theinsulating structure, the opening being spaced from the first conductivematerial and the opening exposing the second gate that is spaced fromthe first conductive material; depositing a second conductive materialin the opening such that the second conductive material is electricallycoupled to the second gate; etching an opening in the first insulatinglayer, the opening extending from the first conductive material to thesecond conductive material; and depositing a third conductive materialin the opening that extends from the first conductive material to thesecond conductive material that electrically couples the active area ina region spaced from the first gate to the second gate.
 2. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the first gate is a gate of a firsttransistor and the active area it overlays is a first channel region ofthe first transistor and the first conductive material electricallyconnects to a drain of the first transistor, the drain of the firsttransistor being directly adjacent to the second gate.
 3. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the second gate overlays a second activearea of a second transistor and the third conductive materialelectrically connects the drain of the first transistor to the secondgate of the second transistor.
 4. The method according to claim 1,wherein each of the first, second and third conductive materialscomprise tungsten.
 5. The method according to claim 1, furtherincluding: depositing a sealing layer overlying the insulating structureprior to depositing the first insulating layer, the sealing layer beingan etch stop for an etch of the first insulating layer.
 6. The methodaccording to claim 1, further including: planarizing an upper surface ofthe first conductive material and an upper surface of the secondconductive material.
 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein thesecond conductive material being different from the first conductivematerial.
 8. A method, comprising: forming an first active area of asemiconductor; forming a gate directly adjacent to the first activearea; forming an insulating structure over the first active area andgate; etching an opening in the insulating structure spaced from thegate, the opening exposing the first active area in a region spaced fromthe gate; depositing a first conductive material in the opening toprovide an electrical connection to the first active area; depositing afirst insulating layer over the insulating structure and the firstconductive material; etching an opening in the first insulating layer,the opening being spaced from the first conductive material and theopening exposing the gate that is spaced from the first conductivematerial; depositing a second conductive material in the opening suchthat the second conductive material is electrically coupled to the gate;etching an opening in the first insulating layer, the opening extendingfrom the first conductive material to the second conductive material;and depositing a third conductive material in the opening that extendsfrom the first conductive material to the second conductive materialthat electrically couples the first active area in a region spaced fromthe gate to another gate.
 9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:forming a second active area of the semiconductor, the gate overlyingthe second active area, the gate overlying a channel region of thesecond active area.
 10. The method of claim 8, the step of forming aninsulating structure includes: forming multiple layers;
 11. The methodof claim 8, further comprising: planarizing an upper surface of thefirst conductive material and an upper surface of the second conductivematerial.
 12. The method of claim 8, wherein the second conductivematerial being different from the first conductive material.
 13. Amethod of forming a semiconductor structure, comprising: forming anactive area of a semiconductor; forming a first gate overlying theactive area; forming a second gate directly adjacent to the active area;forming an insulating structure over the active area and the first gate;etching a first opening in the insulating structure spaced from thefirst gate, the first opening exposing the active area in a regionspaced from the first gate; depositing a first conductive material inthe first opening to provide an electrical connection to the activearea; depositing an insulating layer over the insulating structure andthe first conductive material; etching a second opening in theinsulating structure and the insulating layer, the second openingextending from the first conductive material to the second gate andexposing the first conductive material and the second gate; anddepositing a second conductive material in the second opening, thesecond conductive material extending from the first conductive materialto the second gate and electrically couples the active area in a regionspaced from the first gate to the second gate.
 14. The method accordingto claim 13, wherein the first gate is a gate of a first transistor andthe active area it overlays is a first channel region of the firsttransistor and the first conductive material electrically connects to adrain of the first transistor, the drain of the first transistor beingdirectly adjacent to the second gate.
 15. The method according to claim13, wherein the second gate overlays a second active area of a secondtransistor and the third conductive material electrically connects thedrain of the first transistor to the second gate of the secondtransistor.
 16. The method according to claim 13, wherein each of thefirst and second conductive materials comprise tungsten.
 17. The methodaccording to claim 13, further including: depositing a sealing layeroverlying the insulating structure prior to depositing the insulatinglayer, the sealing layer being an etch stop for an etch of theinsulating layer.
 18. The method according to claim 17, the step ofetching etching a second opening in the insulating structure and theinsulating layer, includes: etching a gate opening through theinsulating structure and the insulating layer exposing the second gate;and etching a recess opening through the insulating layer extending fromthe gate material opening to the first conductive material, exposing thefirst conductive material.
 19. The method according to claim 13, whereinthe second conductive material being different from the first conductivematerial.
 20. The method of claim 13, wherein etching a second openingin the insulating structure and the insulating layer is carried out in asingle step etching the second opening in the insulating structure andthe insulating layer.